Find out how popular the last name Kok is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Kok.

Kok, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Kok surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kok in America

Kok is the 17398th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kok surname appeared 1,622 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Kok.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kok to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Kok

The surname KOK has its origins in the Netherlands, where it first emerged in the late 16th century. It is derived from the Dutch word "kok," meaning "cook" or "chef." The earliest known record of the surname dates back to 1587, when a man named Jan Kok was listed in the parish registers of Leiden, a city in the western Netherlands.

Over time, the KOK surname spread across the Netherlands and beyond. In the 17th century, it was commonly found in the provinces of Holland and Zeeland, where many people with this name worked as cooks or bakers in affluent households or businesses. Some variants of the spelling included Kock, Kocq, and Kocque.

One of the earliest notable individuals with the KOK surname was Hendrick Kok (1670-1735), a Dutch painter known for his landscapes and seascapes. Another was Pieter Kok (1768-1829), a Dutch naval officer who served during the Napoleonic Wars and later became a vice-admiral in the Royal Netherlands Navy.

As the Dutch established colonies and trading outposts around the world, the KOK name traveled with them. In the late 17th century, a man named Willem Kok (1653-1702) was among the first Dutch settlers in South Africa, where he worked as a farmer and landowner. His descendants played a role in the establishment of the Afrikaner community in that region.

In the 19th century, Cornelius Kok (1837-1919) was a prominent Afrikaner leader and politician in the Cape Colony, serving as a member of the Cape Parliament and advocating for the rights of the Afrikaner people.

Another notable figure was Willem Kok (1910-1987), a Dutch businessman who founded the multinational electronics company Philips & Co. in 1891, which later became one of the largest electronics companies in the world.

Throughout its history, the KOK surname has been associated with a wide range of professions and accomplishments, from the culinary arts and painting to politics, business, and exploration. Its Dutch origins and connection to the word "cook" have given it a distinctive and enduring legacy.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kok

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Kok.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Kok was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Kok has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Kok was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Kok, please contact us.

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